(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Friday received members of a pilgrimage from Bavaria, in south-eastern Germany, who donated the Christmas tree that stands in St Peter’s Square. The lights were switched on the tree during a brief ceremony on Friday afternoon and in his words to the delegation, the Pope reflected on the way the Christ Child continues to bring a great light into the darkness of our world today. The Bavarian town of Waldmunchen, close to the border with the Czech Republic, this year brought to Rome the giant fir tree for St Peter’s Square, together with other smaller trees that decorate different parts of the Vatican. Speaking to the town’s civil and religious authorities, who formed part of a large pilgrimage to Rome, Pope Francis noted with gratitude that the impressive tree will remain in the square throughout the Christmas festivities, bringing pleasure to locals and visitors from all over the world. He also spoke of the way Christianity, over the centuries, has enriched German culture and that of Bavaria in a very particular way.Reflecting on the Christmas message of a Saviour, born in the city of David, the Pope said just as the shepherds in Bethlehem were surrounded by a great light, so Jesus today continues to shine his divine light into the darkness of error and sin. Let us all be swathed in that light, he said, so that the joy of the Gospel can fill the hearts of those who encounter Jesus in their lives.

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis celebrated Mass in the chapel of the Domus Sanctae Marthae residence in the Vatican this Friday morning, focusing his remarks on the attitude of some Christians who seem to be “allergic” to preachers and overly critical of those who proclaim the Gospel, suggesting that they are often afraid of letting the Holy Spirit into their lives and are therefore prone to profound sadness.

In his remarks to the faithful following the readings of the day, Pope Francis focused on the day's Gospel, drawn from that according to St Matthew (11:16-19). There, Jesus compares the generation of his time to always unhappy children, explaining that they were, “not open to the Word of God.” Their refusal, he explained, was not of the message, but of the messenger. “They reject John the Baptist,” he said, who came, “neither eating nor drinking ,” saying of him that he was “a man possessed.” They reject Jesus because they say, “He is a glutton, a drunkard, a friend of publicans and sinners.” They always have a reason to criticize the preacher:

“The people of that time preferred to take refuge in a more elaborate religion: in the moral precepts, such as the group of Pharisees; in political compromise, as the Sadducees; in social revolution, as the zealots; in gnostic spirituality, such as Essenes. They were [happy] with their clean, well-polished system. The preacher, however, was not [so pleased]. Jesus reminded them: ‘Your fathers did the same with the prophets.’ The people of God have a certain allergy to the preachers of the Word: they persecuted the prophets, [even] killed them.”

The Pope went on to say that these people claimed to accept the truth of revelation, “but the preacher, preaching, no. They prefer a life caged in their precepts, in their compromises, in their revolutionary plans or in their [disembodied] spirituality.” They are those Christians, who are always discontented with what preachers say:

"These Christians are closed, they are trapped, sad ... these Christians are not free. Why? Because they are afraid of the freedom of the Holy Spirit, which comes through preaching. This, then, is the scandal of preaching, of which St. Paul spoke: the scandal of preaching that ends in the scandal of the Cross. That God should speak to us through men with limits , sinful men, scandalizes: and what scandalizes even more is that that God should speak to us and save us by way of a man who says he is the Son of God but ends [his life] as a criminal. That scandalizes.”

“These sad Christians,” said Pope Francis, “do not believe in the Holy Spirit , do not believe in the freedom that comes from preaching, which admonishes you, teaches you – slaps you , as well – but it is the very freedom that makes the Church grow.”:

“Seeing these children who are afraid to dance, to cry, [who are] afraid of everything, who ask for certainty in all things, I think of these sad Christians, who always criticize the preachers of the Truth, because they are afraid to open the door to the Holy Spirit. Let us pray for them, and pray also for ourselves, that we do not become sad Christians, cutting off the freedom of the Holy Spirit to come to us through the scandal of preaching.”SHARED Text from the Vatican Radio website

ASIA NEWS REPORT: A delegation led by Msgr. Anil Couto, Archbishop of Delhi, met the prime minister to seek rights for Dalit Christians and Muslims. Singh vows to bring the issue before Parliament and terms police attack on priests, nuns and Christian demonstrators "brutal".

New Delhi (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, has offered an apology to the Archbishop of New Delhi and Christian religious leaders , for the " brutal " aggression by the police during a peaceful march in favor of the rights of Dalit Christians and Muslims. Yesterday, the Prime Minister received a delegation of local clergy, led by Msgr . Anil Couto , now in Parliament to reiterate the demand to put an end to the discrimination of Christian and Muslim "outcasts ". During the meeting, hundreds of protesters from across India marched into the building shouting "We want justice."The attack took place on December 11 last during a peaceful march, led by religious leaders Catholics and Protestants, attended by hundreds of people. To disperse the crowd headed towards Parliament, the police used water cannons and launched a charge armed with batons, not even sparing priests, nuns and bishops. Faced with the refusal of the protesters to move, the police arrested more than 400 people , including all the bishops. The police then kept them in custody for five hours, until the prime minister's office confirmed a meeting with a delegation.Speaking to AsiaNews Card. Oswald Gracias, President of the Indian Bishops' Conference and archbishop of Mumbai, called the attack "shameful , disgraceful and deplorable ."Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Msgr. Couto said: "The prime minister has listened with sincere concern and attention to our requests. Has promised to bring the issue before Parliament and do everything in his power to resolve the situation."The struggle to ensure equal rights to Dalit Christians and Muslims began in 1950, when Parliament approved Article .341 of the Constitution on the Scheduled Castes (SC ) : according to this paragraph , the law recognizes the rights and economic, educational and social benefits only for Dalit Hindus. Later, in 1956 and 1990, the status was extended to Buddhists and Sikhs. Not enjoying these constitutional rights, the " Dalit " Christians and Muslims are not even entitled to political representation.SHARED FROM ASIA NEWS

ASIA NEWS REPORT: by Jian MeiShortly before marking his 93rd birthday, Msgr. Liu Jinghe died in his diocese. Reconciled with the universal Church during the pontificate of Benedict XVI, he spent years in Maoist prisons and labor camps. Once free, he held important positions in the Patriotic Association and the board of bishops not recognized by Rome.

Beijing (AsiaNews) - Retired Bishop Liu Jinghe of Tangshan (Hebei), northern China, died in the evening of Dec. 11, shortly before he turned 93. The funeral of Bishop Liu will take place on Dec. 17.Legitimized by Pope Benedict XVI in recent years, Bishop Liu refused to take part in the illicit ordination of Guo Jincai in Chengde on Nov. 20, 2010. Bishop Liu "refused adamantly" though pressured by the Chinese authorities in that case, a source from Hebei recalled.Since November 17, 2010 onwards, he retired. His successor Bishop Fang Jianping has been managing the diocese of Tangshan since 2008.Born in a Catholic family on Dec. 30, 1920 in Tangshan, Liu entered a minor seminary at the age of 11. In 1945, in Beijing, Bishop Paul Leon Cornelius Montaigne ordained him a priest. Then, Father Liu returned to his own diocese and served at Lulong and Tangshan parishes.In 1981, he was ordained the bishop of Tangshan without papal mandate. In 1984, he was a founder of the Hebei Seminary. He had been rector of the seminary for years.According to a blog of Father Peng Jiandao in Hebei, China (http://blog.sina.com.cn/s/blog_500cf6040102elfn.html), as early as in 1946, Father Liu Jinghe was jailed in Lulong and was released in March 1947. On Nov. 13, 1954, Father Liu was jailed again until December 1956. He was released from the Tangshan detention centre. Between 1966 and 1969, he was jailed for the third time. From 1970 to 1979, he was under reform-through-labor in Tangshan areas, working in a textile factory, a quarry and chemical factory.On the other hand, Bishop Liu was once a "strongman" of the Patriotic Association and bishops' council at national level and in Hebei province. According to a statement at the website of Patriotic Association (www.chinacatholic.cn), Bishop Liu was a vice president of fifth Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association (1992-1998) and a vice president of the bishops' council (1998-2004). He held related positions in Hebei. He was a member of the 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference at national level (1983-2003).Shared from ASIA NEWS IT

(Vatican Radio) World leaders join stars from the film and music industry, plus tens of thousands of South Africans today, to honour Nelson Mandela in a memorial service that will celebrate his gift for bringing enemies together across political and racial divides. The former South African president and Nobel peace laureate died last Thursday at the age of 95. US President Barack Obama and three of his predecessors flew into Johannesburg, together with some 90 other world leaders expected to take part in the ceremony at the Soccer City Stadium. It’s the same venue where, 23 years ago, Mandela, just freed from his apartheid jail, was hailed by cheering supporters as the hope for a new, democratic, multi-racial South Africa. Coinciding with the U.N Human Rights Day, the memorial service in the 95,000-seat stadium is the centrepiece of a week of mourning for Mandela. Despite a steady rain on Tuesday morning, the stadium was filled with people who gathered early to celebrate the life and legacy of the man who became a global symbol of forgiveness and reconciliation.Giant screens in three other stadiums in Johannesburg, will relay the memorial service, to others following events from around the country. A huge security operation is in force, with private cars banned from the area around the Soccer City stadium and people being urged to use public transport. South African President Jacob Zuma will give the keynote address, while U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon will also speak – he’s expected to hold Mandela's example up as a beacon of justice, equality and human rights.Pope Francis has sent Ghanaian Cardinal Peter Turkson, president of the Pontifical Justice and Peace Council as the Holy See’s representative to the memorial service. After Tuesday's event, Mandela's remains will lie in state for three days at the Union Buildings in Pretoria, where he was sworn in as president in 1994. He will then be buried on Sunday in the village of Qunu, his ancestral home in the hills of the Eastern Cape province, south of Johannesburg.Text from Vatican Radio website FULL TEXT OF PRESIDENT OBAMA'S SPEECH AT MANDELA MEMORIAL FROM SBS:

To Graça Machel and the Mandela family; to President Zuma and members of the government; to heads of state and government, past and present; distinguished guests - it is a singular honor to be with you today, to celebrate a life unlike any other. To the people of South Africa - people of every race and walk of life - the world thanks you for sharing Nelson Mandela with us. His struggle was your struggle. His triumph was your triumph. Your dignity and hope found expression in his life, and your freedom, your democracy is his cherished legacy.

It is hard to eulogize any man - to capture in words not just the facts and the dates that make a life, but the essential truth of a person - their private joys and sorrows; the quiet moments and unique qualities that illuminate someone’s soul. How much harder to do so for a giant of history, who moved a nation toward justice, and in the process moved billions around the world.

Born during World War I, far from the corridors of power, a boy raised herding cattle and tutored by elders of his Thembu tribe - Madiba would emerge as the last great liberator of the 20th century. Like Gandhi, he would lead a resistance movement - a movement that at its start held little prospect of success. Like King, he would give potent voice to the claims of the oppressed, and the moral necessity of racial justice. He would endure a brutal imprisonment that began in the time of Kennedy and Khrushchev, and reached the ﬁnal days of the Cold War.

Emerging from prison, without force of arms, he would - like Lincoln - hold his country together when it threatened to break apart. Like America’s founding fathers, he would erect a constitutional order to preserve freedom for future generations - a commitment to democracy and rule of law ratiﬁed not only by his election, but by his willingness to step down from power.

Given the sweep of his life, and the adoration that he so rightly earned, it is tempting then to remember Nelson Mandela as an icon, smiling and serene, detached from the tawdry affairs of lesser men. But Madiba himself strongly resisted such a lifeless portrait. Instead, he insisted on sharing with us his doubts and fears; his miscalculations along with his victories. “I’m not a saint,” he said, “unless you think of a saint as a sinner who keeps on trying.”

It was precisely because he could admit to imperfection - because he could be so full of good humor, even mischief, despite the heavy burdens he carried - that we loved him so. He was not a bust made of marble; he was a man of ﬂesh and blood - a son and husband, a father and a friend. That is why we learned so much from him; that is why we can learn from him still. For nothing he achieved was inevitable. In the arc of his life, we see a man who earned his place in history through struggle and shrewdness; persistence and faith. He tells us what’s possible not just in the pages of dusty history books, but in our own lives as well.

Mandela showed us the power of action; of taking risks on behalf of our ideals. Perhaps Madiba was right that he inherited, “a proud rebelliousness, a stubborn sense of fairness” from his father. Certainly he shared with millions of black and colored South Africans the anger born of, “a thousand slights, a thousand indignities, a thousand unremembered moments…a desire to ﬁght the system that imprisoned my people.”

But like other early giants of the ANC - the Sisulus and Tambos - Madiba disciplined his anger; and channeled his desire to ﬁght into organization, and platforms, and strategies for action, so men and women could stand-up for their dignity. Moreover, he accepted the consequences of his actions, knowing that standing up to powerful interests and injustice carries a price. “I have fought against white domination and I have fought against black domination,” he said at his 1964 trial. “I’ve cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.”

Mandela taught us the power of action, but also ideas; the importance of reason and arguments; the need to study not only those you agree with, but those who you don’t. He understood that ideas cannot be contained by prison walls, or extinguished by a sniper’s bullet. He turned his trial into an indictment of apartheid because of his eloquence and passion, but also his training as an advocate. He used decades in prison to sharpen his arguments, but also to spread his thirst for knowledge to others in the movement. And he learned the language and customs of his oppressor so that one day he might better convey to them how their own freedom depended upon his.

Mandela demonstrated that action and ideas are not enough; no matter how right, they must be chiseled into laws and institutions. He was practical, testing his beliefs against the hard surface of circumstance and history. On core principles he was unyielding, which is why he could rebuff offers of conditional release, reminding the Apartheid regime that, “prisoners cannot enter into contracts.” But as he showed in painstaking negotiations to transfer power and draft new laws, he was not afraid to compromise for the sake of a larger goal. And because he was not only a leader of a movement, but a skillful politician, the Constitution that emerged was worthy of this multiracial democracy; true to his vision of laws that protect minority as well as majority rights, and the precious freedoms of every South African.

Finally, Mandela understood the ties that bind the human spirit.

There is a word in South Africa- Ubuntu - that describes his greatest gift: his recognition that we are all bound together in ways that can be invisible to the eye; that there is a oneness to humanity; that we achieve ourselves by sharing ourselves with others, and caring for those around us. We can never know how much of this was innate in him, or how much of was shaped and burnished in a dark, solitary cell. But we remember the gestures, large and small - introducing his jailors as honored guests at his inauguration; taking the pitch in a Springbok uniform; turning his family’s heartbreak into a call to confront HIV/AIDS - that revealed the depth of his empathy and understanding. He not only embodied Ubuntu; he taught millions to ﬁnd that truth withinthemselves. It took a man like Madiba to free not just the prisoner, but the jailor as well; to show that you must trust others so that they may trust you; to teach that reconciliation is not a matter of ignoring a cruel past, but a means of confronting it with inclusion, generosity and truth. He changed laws, but also hearts.

For the people of South Africa, for those he inspired around the globe - Madiba’s passing is rightly a time of mourning, and a time to celebrate his heroic life. But I believe it should also prompt in each of us a time for self-reﬂection. With honesty, regardless of our station or circumstance, we must ask: how well have I applied his lessons in my own life?

It is a question I ask myself - as a man and as a President. We know that like South Africa, the United States had to overcome centuries of racial subjugation. As was true here, it took the sacriﬁce of countless people - known and unknown - to see the dawn of a new day. Michelle and I are the beneﬁciaries of that struggle. But in America and South Africa, and countries around the globe, we cannot allow our progress to cloud the fact that our work is not done. The struggles that follow the victory of formal equality and universal franchise may not be as ﬁlled with drama and moral clarity as those that came before, but they are no less important. For around the world today, we still see children suffering from hunger, and disease; run-down schools, and few prospects for the future. Around the world today, men and women are still imprisoned for their political beliefs; and are still persecuted for what they look like, or how they worship, or who they love.

We, too, must act on behalf of justice. We, too, must act on behalf of peace. There are too many of us who happily embrace Madiba’s legacy of racial reconciliation, but passionately resist even modest reforms that would challenge chronic poverty and growing inequality. There are too many leaders who claim solidarity with Madiba’s struggle for freedom, but do not tolerate dissent from their own people. And there are too many of us who stand on the sidelines, comfortable in complacency or cynicism when our voices must be heard.

The questions we face today - how to promote equality and justice; to uphold freedom and human rights; to end conﬂict and sectarian war - do not have easy answers. But there were no easy answers in front of that child in Qunu. Nelson Mandela reminds us that it always seems impossible until it is done. South Africa shows us that is true. South Africa shows us we can change. We can choose to live in a world deﬁned not by our differences, but by our common hopes. We can choose a world deﬁned not by conﬂict, but by peace and justice and opportunity.

We will never see the likes of Nelson Mandela again. But let me say to the young people of Africa, and young people around the world - you can make his life’s work your own. Over thirty years ago, while still a student, I learned of Mandela and the struggles in this land. It stirred something in me. It woke me up to my responsibilities - to others, and to myself - and set me on an improbable journey that ﬁnds me here today. And while I will always fall short of Madiba’s example, he makes me want to be better. He speaks to what is best inside us. After this great liberator is laid to rest; when we have returned to our cities and villages, and rejoined our daily routines, let us search then for his strength - for his largeness of spirit - somewhere inside ourselves. And when the night grows dark, when injustice weighs heavy on our hearts, or our best laid plans seem beyond our reach - think of Madiba, and the words that brought him comfort within the four walls of a cell:

It matters not how strait the gate,How charged with punishments the scroll,I am the master of my fate:I am the captain of my soul.

What a great soul it was. We will miss him deeply. May God bless the memory of Nelson Mandela. May God bless the people of South Africa.

The Lights of Christmas 2013 projected an incredibly spectacular, colourful display of art and animation on to the 75-metre southern facade of St Mary's Cathedral last night.

Thousands of people gathered in the forecourt for the first night of what has become an increasingly popular tradition for Sydneysiders.

Using digital technology and using 12 powerful projectors the Lights of Christmas began with the story of the nativity which then moved into a wonderful sequence the children found exhilarating - Santa arriving by way of the Church spires into a child's dream to bring the toys alive which then move on to decorate a huge Christmas tree.

The final sequence of Madonna and Child features beautiful Renaissance art works of the Mother of God.

Prior to the display the Australian Girls Choir and also soloist Jake Ryan entertained the crowd with Christmas carols.

Thousands of people came to the first night which was officially opened by the Archbishop, Cardinal George Pell.

The Principal Partner of the Lights of Christmas 2013 is the Australian Catholic University and the Vice Chancellor Prof Greg Craven also welcomed the crowd.

Guest from the major sponsor, Catholic Cemeteries and Crematoria were also at the first night which dazzled not only those watching in the Cathedral forecourt but people walking through Hyde Park.

The Lights of Christmas will now be on every night at 8.30pm up to and including Christmas Day night with a variety of choirs performing beforehand.

Memorial of Saint Lucy, Virgin and MartyrLectionary: 185

Reading 1 IS 48:17-19

Thus says the LORD, your redeemer,the Holy One of Israel:I, the LORD, your God,teach you what is for your good,and lead you on the way you should go.If you would hearken to my commandments,your prosperity would be like a river,and your vindication like the waves of the sea;Your descendants would be like the sand,and those born of your stock like its grains,Their name never cut offor blotted out from my presence.

Responsorial Psalm PS 1:1-2, 3, 4 AND 6

R. (see John 8:12) Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life.Blessed the man who follows notthe counsel of the wickedNor walks in the way of sinners,nor sits in the company of the insolent,But delights in the law of the LORDand meditates on his law day and night.R. Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life.He is like a treeplanted near running water,That yields its fruit in due season,and whose leaves never fade.Whatever he does, prospers.R. Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life.Not so the wicked, not so;they are like chaff which the wind drives away.For the LORD watches over the way of the just,but the way of the wicked vanishes.R. Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life.

Gospel MT 11:16-19

Jesus said to the crowds:“To what shall I compare this generation?It is like children who sit in marketplaces and call to one another,‘We played the flute for you, but you did not dance,we sang a dirge but you did not mourn.’For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they said,‘He is possessed by a demon.’The Son of Man came eating and drinking and they said,‘Look, he is a glutton and a drunkard,a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’But wisdom is vindicated by her works.”

The glorious virgin and martyr St. Lucy, one of the brightest ornaments of the church of Sicily, was born of honourable and wealthy parents in the city of Syracusa, and educated from her cradle in the faith of Christ. She lost her father in her infancy, but Eutychia, her mother, took singular care to furnish her with tender and sublime sentiments of piety and religion. By the early impressions which Lucy received and the strong influence of divine grace, Lucy discovered no disposition but toward virtue, and she was yet very young when she offered to God the flower of her virginity. This vow, however, she kept a secret, and her mother, who was a stranger to it, pressed her to marry a young gentleman who was a pagan. The saint sought occasions to hinder this design from taking effect, and her mother was visited with a long and troublesome flux of blood, under which she laboured four years without finding any remedy by recourse to physicians. At length she was persuaded by her daughter to go to Catana and offer up her prayers to God for relief at the tomb of St. Agatha. St. Lucy accompanied her thither, and their prayers were successful.

Hereupon our saint disclosed to her mother her desire of devoting herself to God in a state of perpetual virginity, and of bestowing her fortune on the poor: and Eutychia, in gratitude, left her at full liberty to pursue her pious inclinations. The young nobleman, with whom the mother had treated about marrying her, came to understand this by the sale of her jewels and goods, and the distribution of the price among the poor, and in his rage accused her before the governor Paschasius as a Christian, the persecution of Diocletian then raging with the utmost fury. The judge commanded the holy virgin to be exposed to prostitution in a brothel" house; but God rendered her immovable, so that the guards were not able to carry her thither. He also made her an over-match for the cruelty of the persecutors, in overcoming fire and other torments. After a long and glorious combat she died in prison of the wounds she had received,—about the year 304. She was honoured at Rome in the sixth century among the most illustrious virgins and martyrs, whose triumphs the church celebrates, as appears from the Sacramentary of St. Gregory, Bede, and others. Her festival was kept in England till the change of religion, as a holy day of the second rank, in which no work but tillage or the like was allowed. Her body remained at Syracusa for many years; but was at length translated into Italy, and thence by the authority of the Emperor Otho I to Metz, as Sigebert of Gemblours relates. It is there exposed to public veneration in a rich chapel of St. Vincent's Church. A portion of her relics was carried to Constantinople and brought thence to Venice, where it is kept with singular veneration. St. Lucy is often painted with the balls of her eyes laid in a dish: perhaps her eyes were defaced or plucked out, though her present acts make no mention of any such circumstance. In many places her intercession is particularly implored for distempers of the eyes.

It is a matter of the greatest consequence what ideas are stamped upon the ductile minds of children, what sentiments are impressed on their hearts, and to what habits they are first formed. Let them be inured to little denials both in their will and senses, and learn that pleasures which gratify the senses must be guarded against, and used with great fear and moderation: for by them the taste is debauched, and the constitution of the soul broken and spoiled much more fatally than that of the body can be by means contrary to its health.

There are few Lucys nowadays among Christian ladies, because sensuality, pride, and vanity are instilled into their minds by the false maxims and pernicious example of those with whom they first converse. Alas I unless a constant watchfulness and restraint both produce and strengthen good habits, the inclinations of our souls lean of their own accord toward corruption.